Lifetime Love
by LilliahIah
Summary: Following Smellerbee (Nika) and Longshot (Marc) from their youth to post war. Rated M for violence and sexual content.
1. Chapter 1

"Run! Now! Keep going!" my father shouted behind me.

I ran up to my mother and she grabbed my wrist while we ran. We stopped behind a tree and she held my shoulders. "Keep running, Nika. Don't let them take you."

I nodded before running towards our house.

The town blew up in flames and smoke right before my eyes. I quickly got down as low to the ground as I could without being on my hands and knees. Shuffling my feet, I shifted across the ground and behind my house. I checked around the corner of the house to see if I'd been followed. I saw my father on the ground with blood pooling out of his mouth, burns stretching up his neck, reaching one of his ears. Tears burned behind my eyes.

I closed my eyes and ran back to him. Crouching beside him, I took his dagger that was sheathed at his hip. The hilt was wrapped in turtle-duck fluff with two pieces of the shell tied on with twine. I gripped the dagger before I noticed a soldier running at me. Lunging forward, I sliced through his left leg before whipping around and leaping onto his back, slicing the blade across his throat. We both landed with a thud, but only I got up. I looked back at my father's dead body a moment longer before running off to the edge of the village.

My feet lightly skimmed across the ground as I ran. Smoke billowed all around me, and it was a struggle to see more than a few feet in front of me. Luckily, it seemed to be the same way for the fire nation soldiers. I climbed up into a low branch of a tree and sprang up to the next branch. A childish move...

The branch snapped under my weight and I fell back to the ground. I rolled in the air so that I landed on my side, causing my right shoulder to scream in agony. I bit my lip, hushing my own scream as tears flooded my eyes. "Damn it..." I muttered as I got up off of the ground. I scanned around me and didn't see any soldiers, but I knew that they knew where I was. That snap had echoed through the whole village.

Taking off again, I realized how wrong I'd been.

Two soldiers stood in my path, hands glowing bright with flickering, orange flames. Both smirked when they saw me. I grimaced and drew out my father's dagger. One, who looked much older than the other one, sent a wave of flames across the field to me. I flinched and leaped to the right, crashing into the second soldier. The flames had blinded me long enough to distract me from his location.

He grabbed my left arm, sending burning energy through my veins. I screamed out and swung my foot out. I made contact with his knee, sending him backwards. As he pulled me down with him I twisted upside down and kicked his elbow in, leaping up and away from him. I crashed onto the chard ground with a thud. When I looked behind me, the younger soldier was reeling towards me. I flung out my right arm, launching the dagger through his stomach, where it stuck. Kicking off the ground, I tackled him, yanking the dagger out of his stomach and sending the blade straight across his neck.

He let out a gargled squeal as I jumped back and away from him. He hit the ground in a mass of bloodied flesh. The older soldier watched in horror for a moment before sending wave after wave of fire towards me. I ran towards him after his fourth wave smashed against a hut behind us. The smoke was becoming unbearable and breathing was seemingly a chore. I hurled myself through the air and flipped over, slicing a long gash from the soldier's chest, over his shoulder, and across the back of his neck. I hit the ground and rolled back further away from the soldier.

A chocked growl rose from his throat. He spit out a wad of blood, and as it hit the ground with a plop, he formed a long string of fire. Yelling violently he lashed it out to me. It sliced across my left arm, from my elbow down to my thumb. I screamed in both anger and pain before launching myself back at him, the dagger in front of me. I slammed into him, the blade digging into his stomach. He let out a howl before stomping his foot, launching flames up from the ground.

My feet screamed as the soles were burnt horribly as I leapt up, driving the dagger into the soldier's right shoulder. He yelled again, fire launching out of his mouth. The flames singed the bottom of my pants. I cried out as the burnt cloth brushed against my legs. He smiled as he lit his hand again, flames trickling down to the ground. I panted and stared him down. A wall of flames hurled towards me from my right. I jumped back, but not quick enough to get my right hand out of the way. I screamed as my flesh burst open from blisters.

Damn it... There's another one...

I held the dagger in my left hand as the first soldier laughed. "Stupid kid..."

I snapped. I knew how to fight. My dad taught me everything. I glared at the soldier and charged across the field, swerving to the side of his attack. I slide down and swept his feet out from under him before leaping back and driving the dagger into his right eye. He cried out for a moment before he died. I yanked the blade out and raced towards the newest soldier. My muscles were pulsing with exhaustion and adrenaline as I jumped up into the air. Flipping, I held out my foot and crashed down onto his face, cracking his nose.

I swung around, sending my foot into his neck. A loud snap told me I'd hit the target. Racing away from the scene, I held the dagger in my mouth. Three other soldiers flew in front of me. There's no way I can take them all. My breath came out in short pants and coughs. One of them charged me, a sword in his hand. I ducked down, letting him loom over me before I jumped up, pulling out the dagger in time to pierce his heart. He swerved, taking the blade in his stomach, before he threw me across the field. The other two men raced towards me and pined me to the ground, holding my arms down.

I screamed as their hands started to burn into my arms. They both smirked and pulled me up, holding me above the ground. I thrashed my feet wildly, trying to land a blow on them. Their gripes tightened and I screamed in agony. A third hand gripped my hair into his hand, burning the strands. I cried out as he pulled it back, forcing me to look at him. His face was fair, his eyes a bright gold, and his hair neatly tucked into his helmet. He grinned a wolfish grin before looking over me at the other two men.

"Let's take this one back to camp." He said with a smart-ass tone.

The first hand let go of my hair, or what was left of it, while I was carried away from the town. We approached a clearing with few trees and tents pitched around a small fire pit. I was thrown against one of the trees, my breath only coming in short rasps. Fire nation soldiers circled around me. "What do we do with her general?"

"We take her back and see how much she can fight for us."

Some of the soldiers smiled while others shrugged. Two soldiers crept towards me before slamming me against the tree while others bound me there with ropes.

"You all deserve to burn in your own flames!" I shouted at them. A hand smacked across my face with brute force. The skin on my cheek split open and blood oozed out, draining out and down my face. "What was that?!" I taunted. Maybe if I challenged them to a fight, I'd be able to make a run for it.

"A warning," he muttered.

I shrank towards the tree while the soldiers walked away laughing. The ropes dug into the open burns on my arms and blood seeped through them, I held back tears as the tree bark dug in as well. They all sat around a fire and ate food as the sun slowly set. My body was shaking from the pain and I started to see my vision blur. My head bobbed down before I would jerk it back to an attention spot every now and then. I began gasping for all of my breaths coughing up wads of blood.

Most of the soldiers traveled into their tents to rest while few stayed out and watched camp before they too eventually left. I hung, slightly above the ground, with my head hanging low. A whistle blew out softly above my head in other trees before about four or five kids jumped down from the trees. One landed in front of me.

He looked to be about nine or ten with dark brown hair and his eyes glinted brown with green specks. He was small but stood taller than me by a lot, even though I was his age or only about a year younger than him. He had a long tunic on with pants, but he seemed to have a farmer's hat tied around his neck and a read shawl over his shoulders.

I struggled, trying to move away from him and closer to the tree. He shook his head and looked around. "They took my weapon, dummy. Get out of here!" I whispered softly under my breath, using what was left of it. He shook his head and dug through a bag before pulling out my father's dagger. I thrashed towards him, cutting deeper into my burns. I almost cried out before he covered my mouth with his hand. Tears started pooling out from my eyes, and there was nothing I could do to stop them.

When I stopped whimpering, he continued cutting the ropes away. Shouts had erupted from behind us at this point. "Get...get out of here…" I breathed out before the last rope snapped away. I fell forward into his arms before noticing the short bow on his back. Cries echoed around us as he pulled out his bow, and with me leaning on him he knocked an arrow on the string. He was surprisingly strong for his small stature. I heard a soft '_thwang'_ as the arrow left the string.

I slipped out of his arms and took the dagger from the ground. I gasped for breath before walking around the tree and half leaping half falling onto two or three soldiers and slitting their throats. My arms and ribs screamed in agony as I moved. My vision blurred, but I could see the remaining soldiers fleeing the camp, but only the boy and I remained standing.

Even that didn't last long. A soldier squared off to me and sent two waves of fire crashing to me. I leapt back and cringed as the pain shook my body. He sent long strings of fire towards me and two criss-crossed across my stomach, slicing through my shirt. Pain shot through me as I ran towards him, my dad's dagger heavy in my left hand. I skirted to the right, dodging another shot of fire before making a circle around him, pulling my dagger through his stomach all around. He fell to the ground and I let out long gasps of air. The winter air bit at my open burns, but it was almost relieving.

Another soldier launched himself to me with fire flickering at his fingertips. I ducked down, buckling my knees so that he tripped over me and skid across the ground. He lashed out a large wave under my feet. I leaped up and flipped over, crashing my right foot onto his left elbow, snapping the bone. I spun and landed another kick onto his jaw, getting back away from him. He spun on the ground, hurling a small kuni across my leg, sending a long, narrow gash up to my knee. I cried out and panted as I stood back away from him. Gritting my teeth, I prepared myself for his assault, but it never came.

An arrow pierced the soldier's right shoulder before another landed in the back of his head. He cried out as he fell to the ground. Limp. I was panting heavily, gripping the blade in my left hand, my side in the other. I fell to my knees and felt the boy's arms around me.

His eyes burned into me and I shrugged. "You...you don't...talk much. Do you?"

He shook his head as mine bobbed back and forth before I blacked out, collapsing in his arms.

He carried her back to the treehouses, struggling to hold onto her as they flew up into the branches. Jet stood, perched on a branch as he ran towards him. "Longshot!" Jet called out before he saw the girl. "Who's he?" Jet muttered.

He gave Jet a glare before holding her closer. Her breathing was becoming shorter and shallower.

"Hey man, only you have medical experience." Jet shrugged. "Take her to your hut. Keep an eye on him okay?"

Longshot was already running, carrying her, to his hut. He pushed himself and the girl through the cloth flap before lying her on his sleeping mat. Quickly, he grabbed the leaves used to treat burns. Chewing them until they were like a slimy pulp, he then spit them out onto his hands and spread the pulp across the major burn on her stomach. After wrapping the bandages around her waist up to the bottom of her ribs, he looked at the tattered cloth that was her shirt.

Hesitantly, he lifted it up and over her head. He grabbed his spare undershirt and drew it over her head, dragging it over her torso. It was absolutely too long for her but it was better than tatters. Especially this winter.

He bandaged her shoulders and arms, covering the torn flesh. He shifted so his back was to her as he wrapped her right leg. Once he was finished, he darted out and grabbed a bowl from the kitchen hut, filling it with some of the water in his canteen. When he got back, she was still lying there, but he noticed her torso rising and falling with each breath.

He walked towards her, sitting next to her. Grabbing her old, tattered cloths he started washing the dirt and grime from her face. As he moved the cloth under her eyes, she started shifting.


	2. Chapter 2

My eyes fluttered open before I felt my head pounding. I moaned a bit while holding my hand to my forehead. The boy from the camp was looming over me with a wet rag, his eyes burned into me before he moved and grabbed a canteen.

Holding it out to me, his eyes seemed to demand 'Drink.' I shook my head and tried to sit up. My stomach exploded in pain. I cried out before I felt his hands on me. One rested behind my back while the other, still gripping the canteen, rested under my chin. I looked up at him and noticed how gently he was holding me up. I saw the restraint he was using in his face. He gazed down at me, fear flooding his eyes.

He leaned me back down before offering me the canteen again. I glared at him as I shrugged and nodded. "Fine…" my voice came out shaky and hoarse as he tilted my head back and poured the water. I drank it greatfully before taking it from him and finishing off the canteen.

He smiled a soft, little smile that was only slightly noticeable. I went to sit up again until he put a hand on my chest. I glared at him and tried to push myself up, my arms crying out in pain. "I need to find my father...my mom…" He shook his head slightly and all of the earlier events flooded back to me. The image of my father lying on the ground, blood pooling out of his mouth came crystal clear. I almost threw up, but I held it back, along with my tears.

I had lied back down at this point and was on one side. His hand was resting on my shoulder before he raked his fingers lightly through my hair. It was burnt and choppy, few of the longer locks were still there. The tips were singed and made my hair look much darker than it really was, well that and the smoke trapped in the tangles.

My dad's dagger was on the ground a ways away from me. I reached out towards it, shocked when the boy snatched it up. "Give that back!" I snapped, whirling around to look at him, a pang of pain echoing through my bones. I gritted my teeth and felt my body shudder. "I mean it…" I gasped out when he gently grabbed my arm, leading me to make my back face him.

He gathered my hair up in his fist, mostly consistent of fingers, before dragging the dagger down, cutting most of the length off. He worked on my hair for a while before finally handing me the dagger, holding the hilt out to me with the blade in his hand. I slid it out of his hand before holding it to my chest. He reached over and grabbed a bowl with some water in it, gently running his fingers through my chopped hair again. He grabbed a rag and set it down beside him before rinsing some of the water through my hair, making the original light brown color shine. Grabbing the rag again, he used it as a towel and softly dried my hair. He was gentle about everything he did, and I was thankful for that.

When he was done I let out a soft sigh. I was mostly leaning on him as I sat with my legs crossed on the ground. I turned to look at him, sliding the dagger into the sheath at my hip. "What's your name?" I whispered.

He looked at me and shook his head before looking at me.

"I asked you first." I muttered.

He shrugged before nodding to the bow.

"Archer?"

He shook his head with that small smile he had earlier.

"LONGSHOT!" another boy's voice echoed through the small hut making me jump. I was mostly behind the kid inside with me. I rested my right hand on his shoulder, noticing the careful bandaging wrapped along my fingers, my left hand rested back on my sheathed dagger. Another boy stepped into the doorway and looked in at me. "Oh, look who's awake. Hey man, how's it going? You feeling okay?"

I glared at the older boy in the doorway before lightly shrugging. The older boy looked at the boy in front of me. "Longshot, it's almost dinner time." he said before leaning against the frame. Longshot sat in front of me still, but he was completely relaxed. "I'll tell the others that you were busy and you'll get your own food."

The older boy looked back at me. "Listen kid, I'm Jet. Leader of the freedom fighters. When you're up for it, you can show me your stuff." He smiled before walking away.

I looked at Longshot. "So...Longshot huh?" he turned around and smiled at me. I smiled back before flinching as my stomach growled. He chuckled, and I was shocked at how low his voice was for such a young age. I blushed before lightly pushing smiled again and I couldn't get over how gentle he was right now. I remember how he was at the camp. Seemingly ruthless and completely focused on getting both of us out of there. That side of him was seemingly gone now.

He grabbed my hand and helped me stand up. I stumbled around for a minute before falling back onto him. He wrapped his arms around me and helped me to where we'd be eating. I saw so many kids, swinging and flying through the trees. The branches were bare other than the zip-line equipment and kids swinging to and fro. One group was clustered together, their laughter forming clouds in front of them.

Even though there wasn't a flake of snow, the chill of winter crawled up my spine and I shivered. Longshot pulled me closer. He gave me a questioning look. 'Why are you so cold?'

"Because it's cold!"

'Or you're just weird.'

"Shut up," I joked elbowing him lightly.

'I haven't said one word?' a smile spread across his face.

"Don't be a smartass…" I whispered.

He chuckled again before looking back at me. 'So what's your name?'

"Oh...right…" I didn't want to hear my real name again. Not since my parents were gone. I remembered a point where my dad and I were hunting in the woods…

"_Come on, Nika!" my dad called out in front of me, urging me through the thick leaves. _

_I trudged through the ground before falling face first in a pile of leaves. I cried out as something got stuck in my nose. "Hold on!" my dad said softly as he jogged towards me. He picked me up and smiled, laughing hysterically. "You have a bee in your nose!"_

_I smiled with him as I sneezed the bee out. "Bee's smell weird…" I giggled._

_My dad ruffled my hair, laughing, "You're such a bee sniffer! My little Smellerbee…"_

"Smellerbee," I said softly.

'Told you that you were weird'

I smiled and shrugged. We reached a small, open space. Cushions were laid out around a table. The table itself held plates full of fruit, bread, and meat. In the center of the table was a stone figure shaped like a tree. Longshot lead me to a spot where we both sat. He eased me down onto the cushion, checking with me that I was comfortable. "Hey, I'm off my feet," I said with a giggle, pointing at my bandaged feet, "I'll be fine." He smiled to me and nodded. A few other kids were around us, waiting too.

Jet walked out and sat beside Longshot. "Hey man, how're you holding up?" Jet said smiling at me. I felt myself boil with anger. Why couldn't he tell that I was a girl? Oh well… Longshot seemed to know, and besides, now they wouldn't underestimate me.

I shrugged.

"Come on! You gotta have something to say? Longshot's the only silent one around here. Ain't that right buddy?" Jet clapped a hand on Longshot's shoulder laughing as Longshot gave him a look simply saying 'Seriously?' before he stood up on the table with a cup in his hand.

As he made his speech, Longshot gave me a questioning look, his left eyebrow cocked up, the other resting just above his eye, as he tilted his head in Jet's direction.

"I don't care if he doesn't know I'm a girl. It's not that big of a deal…" I muttered softly.

Longshot nodded 'I know that you are though….'

I shrugged, "Then it's our little unimportant secret."

We both smiled and he nodded. Jet turned to me. "So what's your name?"

"Smellerbee," I said softly.

"Would you like to be a freedom fighter, Smellerbee?" Jet smiled, "We could use a guy like you. Strong enough to walk with a high head, and Longshot rarely fights with someone he doesn't know."

I looked at the ground and thought it over. I ran the past events through my head, my father being killed, my village being destroyed, almost dying myself, I thought that the answer was obvious enough. "I want to fight with you."

Jet smiled and held his cup high. "Everyone welcome Smellerbee! A brave kid just like the rest of us, ready to fight our best to end this war!"

The kids around us cheered, hooped, and hollered. Once Jet sat back down he looked at Longshot and I. "You two are gonna have to share a hut you know?" he said.

I shrugged, "I think I can share a room with the guy who saved my life." I smiled and nudged him. "If it's alright with you."

'Of course'

"Alright! It's settled," I smiled and took a sip from my own cup. It was a soft herbal tea. I couldn't hold back a sigh as it slid down my throat, soothing and warming me from the inside out.

"You understand him?" Jet questioned. "So far I've been the closest we've gotten."

"It seems to me that he's speaking loud and clear." I grinned as we all ate.


	3. Chapter 3

My eyes flew open, the hut was pitch black and I felt my body remain in panic. My breathing increased and I could feel my heart rate racing past light. I felt myself screaming but couldn't hear anything. Tears started flooding from my eyes and my body started convulsing. My hand reached across me as I hugged myself, but I wasn't the only one holding me.

I felt Longshot holding me to him with his long, thin arms. His breath tickled my neck and I felt a shudder zip through my spine. One of his hands held my head to his shoulder as he held me tighter. I let myself fall deeper into him but I could still feel my mouth letting out screams. Foot steps were getting louder outside, coming closer to our little hut.

"What's going on?!" it was Jet's voice.

Longshot turned his head to look at him. I guess Jet had some sort of weapon because I could hear the sound of sheathed metal followed by soft footsteps. After a second or two of more shuffling sounds, another hand rested on my back.

"Smellerbee… They can never hurt you again. I swear it." Jet's voice flew through Longshot's arms and lingered in my ears while Longshot started grazing his hand through my hair.

'I'll never let them touch you...'

My body shook and I felt Longshot's shoulder, stained with my tears. My screams had stopped and so had the tears. I sat in Longshot's embrace for a while longer, Jet still sitting in the room with us. Finally I moved back a bit so that I could see both of them. Jet looked at me with sympathetic eyes. "We're going to make your family proud, and we're going to make sure that this doesn't happen again. That's what we're fighting for." I nodded and Jet gave a soft, fake smile. How could a boy only a few years older than me be so brave? He stood up and looked outside. "It's still pretty late. Try to get some sleep alright?" He waved his hand before leaving the hut, leaving Longshot and I alone in the dark.

I let out a breath and saw a cloud form in front of my face. He pulled me close again. "Longshot… Has this… Has this ever happened before?" I was out of breath and still shaking. I felt him start to nod before he just shrugged. I froze and then snapped out of his arms, flinching and gripping my stomach. He reached out to me and I looked at him. "It's...happened to you…" I gasped out.

His face tightened as he nodded. "Accept I was alone…" I looked at him in awe. His voice had rolled through the air in far too deep of a pitch for someone of his age. His face started to get redder before he looked back at me sheepishly. 'Don't look at me like that...'

"Why don't you talk much?" I asked softly.

He tapped his throat before coughing.

"You got pretty hurt huh?"

He nodded. I looked down at the ground before he rested his hand on my shoulder. When I looked at him he smiled and cocked his head to the side. I giggled softly and he looked at me, his smile broadening. 'You should smile more often.'

I shrugged, "Maybe." I tried to lie down but felt the gash on my shoulder split open. I yelped in pain before I grabbed it. He motioned for me to stay there as he got up and grabbed a roll of bandages and a few leaves. He popped some of the leaves in his mouth and started chewing them as he rolled the sleeve up.

He grimaced when it wouldn't go high enough. I shrugged and pulled my arm out of the sleeve and held the shirt off of my shoulder. Nodding, he unwrapped the bandages that were already there and tossed them aside. He spit out the leaves he'd been chewing and then gave me a warning glance. I got the message and put the sleeve in my mouth. He spread the leaves across the gash, a sharp sting ripped through my veins and I held back a scream, biting down on the sleeve. When he was done spreading the pulp, he grabbed the fresh roll of bandages and rewrapped my shoulder. He tucked the end into the previous folds and set everything down before helping me get the sleeve back on my arm.

"You're good with this kind of stuff huh?" I whispered.

He nodded and smiled.

"Now don't go bragging. 'The best' is a high title!" I laughed as he helped me lie down. He smirked and I let my head fall onto his quiver and I rolled onto my side. I let out a yawn and couldn't stop myself from opening my mouth again. "Good night Longshot. Thank you…"

She was fast asleep beside him. Had he heard her right? Longshot laid on the spare sleeping mat staring at the ceiling. He'd done this before, but never for this reason.

Usually it had been for catching his breath after a nightmare or for continuing a planned process, but it had never been to mull over the meaning of what someone else had said. What she had said over the course of the day was truly confusing. First was the hesitation before she had told him her name. It was almost as if she had forgotten her name, but maybe after what had happened she really never wanted another part of that past back. Second was the fact that she wasn't worried about how others saw her, only about her own abilities that existed. She fought hard and was never hurt when someone got her identity wrong. At least she didn't show it. Third was how she laughed. Her laugh had a deeper side, behind the upbeat figure. It was as if every laugh was genuine, despite her pain.

He admired her for her courage. Her drive. He felt as if he could relate to her.

_Is she like me?_

The thought echoed in his head. He glanced over to see her curled up on her side, her back facing the wall. Her face was so small and innocent, a fragile frame encompassing every emotion buried under layers of skill and technique. Though...right now she was simply asleep. Hypnotized by her, he reached out his hand to move a stray lock of her hair away from her eyes. As she started to stir, he stiffened, pulling his hand back slightly. Her face relaxed and melted against his heart. How could a girl make him feel this way at such an age?

_Because she actually tried to understand you!_

Voices would often answer his thought questions, since he himself never talked much. He smiled as he looked her a while longer. Sunlight slowly creeped past the cloth flap for their doorway and Longshot despised it as he saw it shine in her eyes. He couldn't understand why he felt so angry about something causing her to wake up, but he wanted to keep her asleep so that she could rest. He stood up and tugged on the flap trying to keep it closed, but it was in vain. He heard her shifting behind him as she rolled onto her back and tried to sit up.


End file.
